Mail-bag catcher.



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MAIL BAG GATGHER..

APPLIUATION FILED AUG. s, 1908.

91 5,652. r Patented Mar. 16, 1909.

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UNTTED STATES PATEN T OFFICE.

OSCAR O. AYRES, OF OLATHE, KANSAS, ASSIGNOR TO OSCAR AYRES & (10., OFOLATHE, KANSAS.

MAIL-BAG- CATCHER.

Original application filed March 27, 1908, Serial No. 423,685.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Serial No. 446,712.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, OSCAR 0. Arcane, a citizen of the United States,residing at Olathe, in the county of Johnson, State of Kansas, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Mail-Bag Catchers; and Ido hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and eXactdescription of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in theart to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The present invention relates to improvements in mail-bag catchers, andmore par ticularly to a catcher designed for attachment to a mail carand for use in connection with a station-located receiving anddelivering apparatus of the type shown and described in my prior aplication, hereinafter identified, of which application, this case is adivision, the principal object of this invention being the provision ofan exceedingly simple, inexpensive and eiiicient catcher arranged forattachment to the car in such a manner as to permit of its reversal andoperation irrespective of the direction in which the car is traveling.

Briefly described, the catcher is in the form of a vertical platepivoted at one end to the frame of the car door and provided with ahorizontal shelf upon which the bag is adapted to rest prior to itsremoval by the apparatus located at the receiving station, said platehaving its upper and lower edges bent laterally into the form oftriangular wings whose forward sides are notched, so as to cooperatewith the adjacent end of the plate in producing an arm adapted to removethe bag from the above-mentioned station-located apparatus.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, in which corresponding parts are designated bythe same reference numerals throughout both views.

Of the said drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of the improvedcatcher. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

The catcher, as shown, comprises a verti cal plate 1 designed to bepivoted at one end to the adjacent side of the frame of the car door,such arrangement permitting pivotal movement of the catcher bodily in ahorizontal plane. The upper and lower edges of the plate are bentlaterally to form horizontal triangular wings 2 which project toward theinterior of the car, the inner edge of each .wing being provided with abead 3 adapted to receive a rod 4 which projects beyond the same at itsforward end, as shown, and forms a stop which is designed to contactwith the opposite side of the door frame, thus limiting t e outwardmovement of the catcher, and

disposing the plate 1 at an acute angle to the I plane of the car side,as will be apparent.

The outer face of the plate 1 has secured thereto between its upper andlower edges in in any preferred manner, a horizontaltriangular shelf 5,whose width is greatest at its rear end. This shelf is adapted tosupport the mail-bag to be removed by the catcher (not shown) at thereceiving station, the ring carried by the bag at one end thereof beingheld in position for engagement by the catcher hook by means of a springstra 6 secured at its outer end to each wing an having its inner endbent outwardly. There are, as stated, two of such straps, one or theother of which is utilized, according to the direction in which the caris traveling, the pivotal connection between the plateand door framebeing such that said plate may be removed from one side thereof,reversed, and subsequently attached to the other. side. The forward edgeof each of the wings 2 is provided with an inwardly-extending V-shapednotch 7 the forward edge of the plate cooperating with the adjacentportions of said wingsto form a forwardly-extending vertical shoulder 8which is thus spaced away from the rear walls of the notches 7 and isadapted to remove the bag from the crane at the receiving station as thetrain passes thereby. It will therefore be obvious that during thepassage of the train past the receiving station, the mail-bag restingupon the shelf 5 will be removed by the catcher located at the station,while the shoulder 8 will remove from the crane arms, the bag to bedelivered to the train.

The apparatus located at the receiving station, has not been illustratedin this application, inasmuch as it forms the subject of a separateapplication filed March 27, 1908, Serial Number 423,685, of whichapplication this case is a division.

What is claimedlis: '1. AiEimaiI-bag catcher, comprising a mail-bag disosed upon said shelf.

2. A ma -bag catcher, comprising a swinging vertical plate provided atits u per and lower edges with inwardly directec triangular wings, toeffect the disposition of ort; a horizontal shelf secured to the outerface of said late; and a depending strap secured to said plate andhaving its lower end outbent, to position the ring of a mail-bagdisposed u on said shelf.

3. A mail-bag catcher, comprising a vertical plate pivoted at one of itsside edges and provided at its top and bottom edges with rearwardlyprojecting horizontal wings, each of said wings notched, to cooperatewith the other side edge of said platev in forming a bag-removing armhaving its forward edges,

4:. A mail-bag catcher, comprising an angularly-disposed vertical platepivoted at its rear edge and provided at its top and bottom rectedV-shaped notch, to cooperate with the r i 1 forward edge of said platein forming a bag- 16II1OV1Hg arm.

5. A mail-bag catcher, comprising an angularly-disposed vertical platepivoted at its zontal lane, and provided at its top and bot- 1 tom opges with inwardly-extending horizonltal triangular wings, the forwardedge of each wing having an inwardly-extending V-shaped notch formedtherein, to cooperate l with the forward edge of said plate in forml inga bag-removing arm; and a laterally-pro i jecting horizontal shelfsecured to the outer face of said plate and disposed longitudinallythereof.

in presence of two witnesses.

A OSCAR O. AYR ES.

1 lvitnessesz C. V. FREY,

i DAISY RHOADES.

i rear edge for swinging movement in a horn r; sald plate at an angle tothe plane of 1ts sup- In testimony whereof I t'fllX my signature

